Mom charged with trying to drown kids

MIAMI BEACH (CBS4) - A South Florida woman faced a judge Friday afternoon just hours after she allegedly tried to drown her children by driving into Biscayne Bay.

Shirley Jean, 24, is charged with two counts of premeditated murder. Miami Beach Police say Jean was driving eastbound on the Julia Tuttle expressway shortly before 6:00 p.m. Thursday when she swerved off the road and drove right into the Inside the car were her two children: a 7-year-old daughter and a 2-year-old son.

Jean will not yet be released on bond and her sisters and brothers are trying to take custody of the children, which may happen as early as Friday night. Jean is to have no contact with the children. Police say she admitted to trying to drown them both.

On Thursday, three men who were fishing found Jean and her daughter in the water and the men say the mother wouldn't let them anywhere near the girl.

One of the man said Jean tried to bite him as he attempted to grab the child.

When police arrived, they say they found the young woman trying to drown her daughter by pushing her head underwater.

Police say they immediately jumped in to grab the girl. They pulled her out. They also grabbed the 2-year-old son, who was in the car.

Her longtime landlord was in shock when he heard the news about his tenant.

"I can't believe it", said her landlord Jose Pedraz who also said she's always been a good mother.

"She's an average mom, always looking out for her kids, they're well-dressed, well-fed," said Pedraz.

Her neighbor agreed.

"This is a real, real surprise," said Luis Enrique.

The Department of Children and Families is investigating. A DCF spokesperson says the department has no prior history with this family.